Deconstructing Magic

Compared to the lower grades who are enthusiastically engaged in playing games, the senior students have it much harder.

They can't attend Professor Fawley's classes, nor can they play the game of Spheres, and they thought that after the duel, Professor Quirrell might be inspired to feel a sense of mission,

but he still seems to have given up!

Their dissatisfaction with Professor Quirrell has reached its peak.

In the school auditorium.

"Do you know what Professor Quirrell talked about in today's lesson?" Percy complained loudly to Penelope.

Penelope graciously played along, "What did he talk about?"

"He lectured for a full two hours about giants! It was so vivid that I felt like I could smell the stench!"

Percy slumped down, resting his head on the long table, and sighed heavily.

"This year I still have to take my O.W.Ls, and with this situation, it's likely I won't earn 12 certificates."

"Oh, my dear brother, why don't you ask the esteemed Professor Fawley for advice?" George jumped in with feigned earnestness.

Percy waved dismissively.

"Forget it, the whole grade hopes to have classes with Professor Fawley, but so far the professor hasn't agreed."

Fred shook his head, looking a bit deserving of a punch, "No no no, dear Percy, the professor might not teach you, but he could give you a little guidance!"

Percy glanced at the staff table, where only Professor Fawley was absent.

"I don't even know what he's busy with; he's hardly ever seen, how would he have time to guide me?"

Recently, Tewell has been preoccupied with processing that duel, studying Neville, and being absorbed in wizard's chess, so he appears in front of the students only during class time.

George flashed a smug smile.

"Here's a tip, between 9 and 10 p.m., in the first-floor Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, you'll find the professor."

Penelope asked puzzledly, "Why?"

"As a reward, the professor gives them private lessons at that time," Percy said enviously. "But the professor must be busy then, right?"

The twins shook their heads in disappointment.

"The professor plays wizard's chess while answering our questions."

"His skills in wizard's chess have improved dramatically, and we're no match for him now."

"We can feel that the professor is getting dissatisfied with us; his teaching has become lackadaisical."

"So, we need someone good at chess—"

"To keep the professor company in his games!"

As they grew more excited, George and Fred both put their hands on Percy's shoulders, "This tough mission falls to you, dear brother!"

"Come on, you just want a pawn, don't you?"

Though he said that, a smile appeared on Percy's face, his eyes brightening, a stark contrast to his previous gloom.

"Right, isn't Ron better at this? Why not ask him?"

"When you're no longer up to scratch for the professor, we'll kick you out and pull Ron in," George said matter-of-factly.

"Great, here I thought you guys were skipping out on orb practice to use me as a tool!"

...

At nine o'clock, Tewell arrived in the classroom on time.

Lately, he had been spending an hour each day practicing wizard's chess and had indeed improved rapidly; now even the strongest among them, Cedric, couldn't beat him.

Thus, filled with pride, he went to challenge Professor McGonagall's chessboard and, naturally, lost.

But it was a close match, not a total defeat, proving his skill level.

"Hey, if I remember correctly, you're Percy, right?" Tewell said in surprise as he noticed the fifth person in the classroom.

"Yes, Professor Fawley," Percy introduced himself with some restraint, "I'm Percy Weasley, George and Fred's brother, and also the Gryffindor prefect."

His smile was a bit awkward; he had previously questioned Professor Fawley's abilities, but now he greatly admired the professor.

"Why even mention being a prefect?" George complained as he stepped forward to tell Tewell about Percy's desire for guidance.

Tewell's eyes lit up when he heard this.

Ron was undoubtedly better than a chessboard, but with such a large skill gap, he might not learn much.

On the other hand, it made much more sense to have Percy play first, then find Ron.

"If the professor doesn't like it, we can find another sparring partner for you," Fred added finally.

Tewell set up the chessboard on the desk and patted the seat beside him.

"No need for that now, Percy, come over and we'll talk while we play a game."

Percy hurried over joyfully and sat down cautiously, while the other four gathered around Tewell with their notebooks.

This was how their private lessons usually went; Tewell would speak while playing chess, and they would stand by, listening and occasionally taking notes.

The only one who had a hard time was Cedric, who had to focus on both the chess game and understanding the lesson.

And he couldn't take notes!

That's why they had insisted on bringing someone else in.

With the pieces set, Tewell played as usual from the white side.

"Move the pawn to A3. The O.W.Ls exams are divided into theory and practical parts, Percy, what preparations have you made?" Tewell casually asked after Percy made his move.

Percy thought for a moment before replying, "I've memorized all the theory parts, but I lack practical experience, which worries me for the exams."

Tewell nodded absently.

Typical of a top student, always focusing on memorization.

"You've done well. The theory of Defense Against the Dark Arts is often overlooked, but in fact, many who perform poorly do so because of this part."

He glanced at Cedric and the others, who were furiously taking notes.

"That's also why you have exams in class, especially you two Weasleys, you focus too much on practical work. If you fail the theoretical part of your end-of-year exams, I'll have you write papers over the summer."

George and Fred shivered and nodded hurriedly.

Tewell then turned his attention back to Percy.

"Regarding the practical part, I recommend a special method."

Not only Percy, but even Cedric and the others stopped writing, all ears and eyes focused on him.

"Break down the spells."

Tewell took out his wand and intoned "Lumos," but only after speaking did he wave his wand, eventually generating a noticeable wave of magical energy.

The tip of the wand slowly began to glow.

"Break a spell into three steps: the incantation, the gesture, and the release of magic. Study and understand each step in depth before moving on to the next spell."

Percy nodded thoughtfully, but Cedric and the others didn't understand.

A spell is just a spell; why study and understand it further?

Tewell didn't explain; this was not content for third-years to touch. In fact, they probably wouldn't learn about this until their sixth year—

The integration of magic.

This is also another way to achieve non-verbal casting, which is harder and stronger.

At this level, casting spells is as natural as moving one's own limbs; there's no worry about casting them poorly or misusing learned spells.